


Churn

by chaosLydia



Series: 14,000 Things to be Happy About [8]
Category: Star Wars Legends - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Please be gentle!, This is what happens when a non-Reylo tries to write a Reylo fic as a gift for a friend
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-14 08:08:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28792194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chaosLydia/pseuds/chaosLydia
Summary: A series of ficlets about Rey and Ben living in post-war life.
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Series: 14,000 Things to be Happy About [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1163144
Comments: 8
Kudos: 14





	Churn

**Author's Note:**

  * For [A_Spark_Of_Hope](https://archiveofourown.org/users/A_Spark_Of_Hope/gifts).



> I wanted to write a fic for my friend, even though I'm not a Reylo. I hope it's okay! 
> 
> Prompts from "14,000 Things to Be Happy About"  
> Page 582: Noontime visits, page 49: Breathing deeply, page 292: Knowing its never too late to learn, page 508: Nighttime outdoor parties, page 173: Singing in the shower, page 148: Cowboy bars, page 172: Silly times, page 1: A lake catching the last flecks of sunlight coming in over the pines
> 
> The last two vignettes have food and pregnancy for content heads up.

Ben chose this cottage to restart his life for many reasons.

The moon wasn’t very populated. Tourists preferred the sandy, warm beaches of the planet below as opposed to the moon’s cold fog, rocky coast, and frost encrusted pine trees that filled the mountainsides.

No one in the nearby fishing town knew who he was. He did stick out a bit, as the town was mostly populated by Nautolans, Quarren, Gungans, and other aquatic species who braved the vast frigid seas. Enough human traders, merchants, and visitors inhabited the area, though, so he wasn’t an oddity. 

He loved the sea. It was a love that was formed from his childhood home on Chandrila. The movement of the waves. The churning of the undercurrent. The calm moments. The raging ones. It gave. It took. It changed. 

To Ben, the sea was the Force. 

His cottage wasn’t very big. Not that it needed to be. The kitchen and living quarters were all one room with a small refresher to the side. His bed was up in a loft area. For the cottage’s age, it had a surprisingly good heating system. When he stoked up the wood stove in the living room, it was a toasty little sauna.

And that was it. It was just him, the sea, his little cottage, and the Force.

And her. 

He sensed her presence in the distance, having landed her ship in the town’s tiny spaceport. That warmth and joy grew with each passing moment. He could almost hear her soft boots hitting the cobblestone road and the rocky path up the hill. 

Coming to the window and holding a cup of tea for her, Ben smiled seeing Rey push open the door to his picket fence.

She noticed him, grinned so wide, and wildly waved her arm in excitement.

* * *

Rey rolled over in bed and watched Ben sleep. The night chill was starting to creep into the edge of his cabin. But the hearth’s warmth in the living area below kept the worst of it at bay.

She understood why he didn’t want to come back into the New Republic, why he chose to live so far away. He was still serving his once a month reparations time in the very public eye for the entire galaxy to see. It was blasted on every Holonet news channel. When he was allowed to leave, she understood why he wanted to hide away here on some backwoods moon.

He told her tonight that he feared how long he would be allowed to stay here. Eventually, the townspeople would find out who he was. He would have to move again to gain peace once more. 

But it was a burden he accepted willingly. Rey wondered if he was happy about it at times. It gave him something to focus on, to work towards. 

She feared his drive could lead to obsession. A drive to fix a galaxy of mistakes. One man couldn’t bring back billions of lives lost, but he could wear the guilt of it. It was why she tried to be here when Poe or Rose or Finn didn’t need her.

Tonight after dinner, Ben had taken her hand. Their connection tingled from her fingertips and dove into her soul. 

“Will you help me?” he had whispered.

“With what?” she had gripped his hand tighter, their fingers laced together.

She sensed his fear--no. It had been nerves in that moment. Licking his lips, Ben awkwardly stuttered, “When I have to leave this village, I would like for you to have a new house picked out… for us.”

Even now as Rey laid in bed, watching him breathe deeply in his slumber, she felt the same joy and light fill her. She feared she would shine too bright and wake him. Giddiness like a child's. Euphoria after his slick skin had pressed against hers between the sheets. Every moment gave her breath and life for whatever came next.

They had a future.

Together.

Finally. 

* * *

Rey sat back on her heels, “Do you understand?”

Ben pursed his lips almost comically tight and slowly looked back at the twisted metal before him. The scent of oil and fuel was so strong. The smell was going to be in his clothes for weeks. They had been at this for over an hour. 

Putting his hand on the side of his speeder, Ben chuckled and shook his head, “Not even a little bit.”

He sensed a touch of annoyance in her that quickly passed. Rey’s patience and kindness slid into its place. She reached into the side of his ride, “Okay! We’ll start by going over the parts again. This is the fuel gasket-”

“I think you should handle this for both of us.”

She scoffed, “Nonsense. It’s never too late to learn how to change the oil in your speeder. Now let’s start again.”

Sighing heavily to refocus once more, Ben leaned in with her to tackle this metal beast. 

* * *

Ben leaned on the balcony, enjoying the warm night air. Inside the hall just through the doors in front of him, a birthday party was underway. There were easily over a hundred people in there. It was lively, bright, and full of music and laughter. Those kinds of events always made him anxious. 

It did when he was a child when his mother had Senate events. 

It did now.

Both times, he knew he was an outsider. Today was Finn’s birthday, and his fiance, Poe, made sure to pull out all the stops. He spared no expense. While Finn hadn’t known his real birthday, he chose the same day as he got his name. The name that Poe picked for him. Finn said it was the day he truly began to live. Poe invited every person they knew to come celebrate with them. 

Except for Ben. He was Rey’s plus one. As they had helped set up earlier, Poe made sure Ben was aware of that fact. He held his tongue when Finn arrived so as not to ruin his moment.

Ben sipped from his drink, swallowing the bitter wine. 

He sensed Rey’s worry before she found him outside. He knew that look, that glimmer in her eye. 

“You can’t fix it,” Ben spoke first, gazing down at her. Rose had braided her hair, woven flowers and beads into it. It continued to surprise him the new ways Rey could look beautiful. 

She huffed, “I’ll talk to Poe. He was out of line.”

“No, he wasn’t.”

A touch of red was crawling up into her cheeks, “To bring it up at Finn’s party!”

“I shouldn’t have come,” Ben shrugged. “I’m going to go wait on the ship.”

“No!” she whipped around to him. “You helped defeat Palpatine too! You almost lost your life! You have every right to be here as much as, as, as Rose or Kaz or-”

“Rey!” Ben’s tone was sharp. “You can’t accept my apology for Poe!”

Her mouth opened and shut quickly. Her eyes were wide, and he hated that look. He hadn’t raised his voice like that in so long. He never wanted to again. 

Setting his drink on the railing, he slid his fingers into hers. She stepped into him, her head falling onto his shoulder as Ben kissed those little flowers in her hair.

“I’m okay,” he whispered. 

She nodded, a short little movement.

He held her for a few minutes longer before he left her for the ship. 

* * *

Spitting toothpaste into the sink, Ben cringed at his partner in the shower. He adored Rey, every aspect of her being. He didn’t understand how he could love her more each day. He missed her when she went into the next room.

But by the Force she couldn’t sing.

And she loved crooning in the shower. The soap bottle was her microphone. The spray of the water was her lights. In that space, there were childhood dreams that were played out. To live another life. To have a moment to be someone else.

Ben could put up with it knowing how she loved it.

Then, an idea arose in his mind. Shrugging off his shirt and sleep pants, he stepped into the shower to give her another audience member. 

* * *

Rey pushed open the door to the cantina, and the room fell silent. Ben stepped in behind her and sensed the room.

The building was pre-Clone Wars era. He could smell the musty wood that probably had some unhealthy mold growing in it. Dust had long lived in the corners of this establishment. No amount of cleaning could save this place from eventual condemnation.

Rey watched the patrons carefully as she moved through. But she realized they were all just as worn down as the building. None of them were younger than 50 years old. Some wore the badges from their glory days. The two Imperials in the corner were bold enough to have their uniform jackets on. But as their hands shook trying to hold their drinks, Rey could sense they weren’t a threat anymore.

“There,” Ben pointed to the back room.

Rey nodded, “I can feel him.”

“Glad we got here in time.”

They moved silently through the shallow sea of a few tables and paused in the door to the back. 

There, a man in Mandalorian armor sat with his helmet resting on a table. The shine of the metal had faded into a dull matte surface. His skin was a tough leather tan hue full of wrinkles and scars of past battles. What was left of his hair were thin wispy white strands on his age spot splattered head. Though his eyes had sunk deep into his face, there was still a sparkle of life in them.

On his lap, a child clung to him. He appeared no older than a toddler, but it was clear he was wise beyond his appearance. His green ears stood up in attention; his black eyes watched the newcomers carefully. Rey and Ben could sense that he was both scared and sad, knowing what was about to come.

Rey smiled softly as she knocked politely on the door, “Mr. Djarin? You contacted us about your son...”

* * *

“The meringue is breaking.”

Rey’s hair was starting to stick to her forehead as she glared Ben down. His lips were pressed together trying his best not to smile. She was the one who insisted on wanting to learn how to make one of his favorite dishes. He warned it wasn’t a simple recipe. 

Now on her third attempt, she was about to lose it.

Gripping the bowl and the thin spatula tight in her hands, she hit at the mixture harder. This was going to be a meringue, whether it liked it or not!

He gently tried, “You have to slow down-”

“You know what!” she pointed the spatula…

...and slung meringue up on her shirt. 

Silence fell in the kitchen. 

Rey quietly loathed the bowl.

Ben lost his battle first and broke into deep laughter, throwing back his head. His entire body shook.

Rey loved that sound. It was rare, like a new star being born.

She couldn’t let him get away so easily though. Gripping the spatula, she scooped up a pile of the liquid sugar with one hand. The other hand shot out and snagged his shirt.

“No!” he gasped.

There was no escape. 

Not this time.

* * *

Rey sighed comfortably as she gazed out across the water. It had been a rare warm day. They had enjoyed the sea together. Had a wonderful lunch on the beach as the sun dried their skin. Hand in hand, they strolled the sandy shore to find interesting shells. Finding a quiet place, they meditated in the Force together. The sea’s churning waters helping them connect to all things. 

Now on the bench they built together last year in their garden, Rey laid across the length of it. Her head was in Ben’s lap as she watched the last flickers of sunlight sink below the water. He was reading a new novel on a datapad. The two of them enjoyed the peace together.

Ben’s hand slid off the back of the bench.

It rested gently on her belly, feeling the small life force growing inside of her.

And everything was as it should be.


End file.
